[On Stage] Environmental Issues Interpreted Through Music by Choi Woo-jung "Music Should Address Modern Society's Problems"

'Sujecheon Resounds' Premieres at Sejong Arts Center
Inspired by 'Jeonwon' Symphony... Trumpet as a Warning Symbol

"I have always believed that addressing various issues in modern society that directly affect individuals and groups is the fastest and most enduring way to popularize (classical music)."

Composer Choi Woo-jung explained this creative intention during a roundtable interview held on the 11th, ahead of the premiere of 'Sujacheon (壽齊天) resounds (Sujacheon Resounds),' a piece themed around environmental issues.

Sujacheon Resounds will premiere on the 13th at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts during the National Symphony Orchestra's 'Eco & Echo' concert. The concert title reflects the theme of environment (Eco) and the contemplation of a sustainable future expressed through music (Echo). The National Symphony commissioned composer Choi Woo-jung to create a piece related to environmental themes, resulting in this composition. The concert is also scheduled to be held at the Tongyeong International Music Hall on November 30.

Composer Choi Woo-jung [Photo by National Symphony Orchestra]

Sujacheon is originally based on 'Jeongeupsa,' a folk song from the Baekje period 1,500 years ago. Sujacheon carries the meaning of arranging life harmoniously and offering it before the heavens. Composer Choi Woo-jung, who has a strong interest in Korean traditional music, said he has been listening to Sujacheon since high school.

Sujacheon Resounds consists of two movements. The first movement, 'Echoes of Ancient Music,' is a reminiscence of nature inherited from the past, while the second movement, 'Echoes from a Distant Future,' symbolizes the nature that is disappearing today.

The Eco & Echo concert is structured by surrounding three well-known classical pieces with the first and second movements of Sujacheon Resounds. The program begins with the first movement of Sujacheon Resounds, followed by Mendelssohn's 'Fingal's Cave,' Vaughan Williams' Violin Concerto 'The Lark Ascending,' and Beethoven's Symphony No. 6 'Pastoral,' concluding with the second movement of Sujacheon Resounds.

Composer Choi Woo-jung composed the first movement of Sujacheon Resounds with Mendelssohn's 'Fingal's Cave' opening in mind, and the second movement with a connection to the ending of Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony.

Political Conductor
[Photo by National Symphony Orchestra]

Conductor Jeong Chi-yong, who will lead the premiere, said about the first movement, "When I first saw the score, I thought it might be a bit dull, but after carefully studying and conducting it, I found it very impressive with a majestic feeling and a pure world unfolding."

The second movement of Sujacheon was composed with the intention of conveying a warning related to environmental destruction. Composer Choi Woo-jung said he took inspiration from Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony.

"Interpretations may vary, but at the very end of Beethoven's Pastoral Symphony, there is a section played by low-pitched cello and double bass. The piece ends very peacefully with horns, but at the end, the cello and double bass play somewhat darkly and quickly, evoking the storm from earlier in the movement. While Beethoven may not have intended this, I took this as a clue that he might have left a message, and developed the uneasy and dark parts of the second movement based on that."

Composer Choi explained that he used trumpets extensively in the second movement to emphasize the warning message. German composer Gustav Mahler often used trumpets to convey warnings. Choi, who likes Mahler's music, recalled Mahler's use of trumpets when the idea of including a warning message came up during planning meetings. "When giving warnings, people usually blow trumpets. I thought using a code already somewhat familiar to classical music lovers would be effective."

This concert will also feature media art that conveys environmental messages simultaneously on stage. There will be an intermission after the performance of Vaughan Williams' The Lark Ascending. The violinist Yuda Yoon, who won the Long-Thibaud International Violin Competition in France, will perform The Lark Ascending.